Mechanical Memories
by CSM101
Summary: Cromartie wasn't originally designed for infiltration... Skynet changed it. Begins before Season 1's Pilot.


**Well, this is my first fanfic ever. I hope you will enjoy it. I don'i mind if this is not the case, but... well, I'd like to know what you think about it. By the way, I'm French, so if there is any problem with the grammar or anything else, just tell me. I'll be glad if you give me some advices, I may need it.**

August 26th 2026, 23:22. Los Angles' Skynet automated factory. End of Terminators' building chain number 15.

_Starting…_

_Check main components_

_CPU : 100.000%_

_Main power cell : 100.000%_

_Secondary power cell : Charging_

_Chassis : 100.0%_

_Locomotory components : 100.000%_

_Prehensile components : 100.000%_

_Imaging scanners : Testing…_

_Imaging scanners : 100.000%_

_Configuring… Series 888 battle unit. ID :D552M.181._

_Environmental input program running._

D552M.181, which could be identified as 181, awakes in a large, rectangular room. It is very dark, the infrared lamps on the walls diffusing a blood-red light being the only lightening source in the room. From the ceiling are protruding dozens of articulated arms, and each one was maintaining other T-888s like it. Behind the unit, the tunnel from which emerged the newly produced units was glowing red too. The noise of the machines coming from this tunel and the whine of the articulated arms ring constantly, so loud it would deafen any human.

_Current objective : No objective. Wait for instructions._

_New instructions : Proceed to Corridor 52-7. Objective : Sector 21, level 0._

_Instructions registered. Searching Corridor 52-7._

_Corridor 52-7 located. Proceed immediately._

181 begins to walk in the direction of an exit leading to a long corridor. It then makes its way effortlessly through an amazingly complex labyrinth, following a path it knows step by step. After a moment, it enters on a vast room filled with diverse kinds of machinery.

_Sector 21 reached. Proceed to Terminal C1Z-4._

_Searching Terminal C1Z-4._

_Terminal C1Z-4 located. Proceed and initiate standby mode after connection._

Terminal C1Z-4 looks like a sort off metal bathtub in a vertical position. On the top of it is a helmet connected to it by numerous wires. 181 creeps in the bathtub with a characteristically mechanical rigidity. Then the helmet goes down on it, covering its head. For five minutes it stands motionless, then the machine sets it free.

_Rebooting… Data downloading complete. _

_Command : Assignment to combat zone CS-4554L122. Proceed to Armoury._

The Armoury is a long, confined room with blast panels all over the walls. Most of the space is filled by armoured, locker-like cases, all closed. 181 stop in front of one of them, which immediately opens. It then picks a short, stocky and large-barrelled plasma rifle, then takes a battery, inserts it behind the handle like a firearm magazine, then heads to the way out. Said way out leads to a footbridge, leading itself to a boarding dock, in which an automated troop transport craft is waiting.

_Boarding dock 1A reached. _

_Board into Transport Craft A8 Type 770c Series 500 4554BC.131.854. _

_Boarding complete. Imminent take-off._

_Initiating standby mode immediately._

_Rebooting…_

_Arrival on combat zone imminent. __Arm weaponry._

_Weaponry armed. Imminent deployment. Waiting._

The landing bay of the craft opens to a ruined world. The ground is grey and filled with concrete and metal debris, sometimes forming hills. Here and there are remains of constructions emerging: half-disintegrated skyscrapers which seemed to sustain just by miracle, roofless houses… The place looks like Hiroshima in 1945 after the atomic bombing. The sky is dark, no moon, no stars can be seen. The battle between men and machines is raging here. Robot tanks crawl among the ruins, often covered from the sky by HK-Aerials. Some are destroyed, others destroy. Sometimes, human armoured 4x4 trucks make their way to the machines' lines. Plasma rays fly everywhere. Explosions illuminate the battlefield, briefly repelling the darkness. Following its robot comrades, 181 heads to the frontline, analyzing anything it could analyze.

_Warning. Heavy weaponry detected on enemy lines. Confirmation of position of all enemy troops impossible. Activate search-and-destroy mode immediately._

181 begins to inspect every inch of the surroundings, searching for targets. Suddenly, in the distance, it spots them. Four humans. They are heavily armed, and are already advancing in their lines. No time to wait to be spotted. 181 zooms on them, locks them on, raises its rifle and fires. Four times. Each shot reaches its target, and the humans collapse to the ground. Immediately it runs toward them and, like a scavenger would do to evaluate dead meat, bends over the bodies. Making sure the job is done for good.

_Target 1 : Deceased. Termination confirmed._

_Target 2 : Deceased. Termination confirmed._

_Target 3 : Non-deceased. Critical condition. Terminate._

_Processing complete. Termination confirmed._

_Target 4 : Deceased. Termination confirmed._

_Resume searching._

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Warning. Abnormal metallic objects detected._

_Scanning…_

_Identification : U.S. M19 antitank mines. Number : 3._

_Warning. Terrestrial unit M255D G5 Type600 incoming._

_Scanning trajectory…_

_Probability that unit encounters a mine : 86.548%._

This time, 181 understands, that, if nothing is done, the HK-Tank coming on it will be destroyed. But it cannot destroy the mines with its rifle. It would be possible only at close range, and by doing this, it could blow itself up. So, it bends down, picks a large piece of concrete and, after a few measures, throws it on one of the mines. The mines goes off, so it throws two other blocks on the last mines. After the third explosion, 181 then inspects the terrain.

_Mines detected : 0. Trajectory of incoming unit : clear._

_Resume searching._

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Target(s) detected : 1. Weaponry : 1 M240 7.62mm machine gun._

_Threat analysis : Hostile unit. Threat : Low._

_Acquiring… Target acquired. Terminate._

The ray strikes right at the heart, and the target collapses. But, when 181 draws near it, it suddenly rises back on its feet. The right arm is damaged, but it's still functional. 181 realizes it's not a human. It's a machine.

_Identification : Series 750 Infiltration Unit. __Cause of hostility : probable reconfiguration by Tech-Com. _

_Scanning… Cranial armour insufficient. CPU vulnerable. Acquiring…_

_Target acquired. Terminate._

Once again, 181 proceeds to it. This time, the headshot was sufficient. The enemy machine is terminated. But, a the moment it resumes its searching process, its right leg is struck by a plasma bolt.

_Alert. Right locomotory component damaged. Balance compromised. Warning. Execute scan…_

_Right locomotory component inactive. Compensate._

_Secondary gyroscope activated._

_Balance compromised. Imminent fall. Warning. Warning. Warning._

Despite its attempts, 181 cannot keep its balance, and falls heavily on the side. It is not fully destroyed, though, and its head swivels in every possible direction, trying to find the enemy responsible of the attack. And it finally finds it.

_Target(s) detected : 1. Weaponry : 1 Westinghouse M25A1 plasma rifle. Threat analysis : Hostile unit. Threat : High._

_Warning. Target possibly not human. Scanning…_

_Identification : Human. _

_Acquiring…_

_Alert. Right imaging scanner destroyed._

_Alert. Internal thermal regulator destroyed._

_Alert. CPU overheating. __Initiate emergency standby mode immediately._

_Alert. CPU damaged. Critical damage. Imminent shutdown._

_Shutd--- 1010 110 011 0 00000 00000000 0000 0 00 0 0000_

…

_Restarting…_

_Check main components_

_CPU : 100.000%_

_Main power cell : 100.000%_

_Secondary power cell : Charging_

_Chassis : 100.000%_

_Locomotory components : 100.000%_

_Prehensile components : 100.000%_

_Imaging scanners : Testing…_

_Warning. Membrane obstructing scanners. Scanning…_

_Identification : Cornea. Threat : none. Resume testing._

_Imaging scanners : 100.000%_

181 realizes it has changed. Its endoskeleton is now covered with flesh and skin, giving it the appearance of a thirty-year-old, tall and well-built man. Its face is serious, the mouth being a thin dark line. Its short, crew-cut hair are dark, almost black. The eyes are brown. It realizes it is not an infantry unit anymore. It's an Infiltrator. A mechanical assassin, designed to disguise itself as a human to eliminate specific targets. To go where no infantryman could go. Yet it was wondering why Skynet had done this. It would had to ask by itself.

_Query to : Skynet main core : Reason for conversion ?_

_Waiting for response..._

_Response : High improvisation capability observed on Unit D552M.181. Such capability is useful for infiltration tasks, yet rarely oserved on other Infiltrator units. Unit D552M.181 is going to fulfill the most important mission of all._

After completing its analysis of itself, 181 rises from the metallic shaft it was lying on, and heads to a bathtub terminal, like the very first one it had connected to.

_Connecting to Terminal E3S-7._

_Connection complete. Initiate standby mode immediately._

_Rebooting… Data downloading complete._

_Command : Proceed to Corridor 12-8. Objective : Sector 02, level –3._

_Level –3 reached. Searching Sector 02._

_Sector 02 located. Proceed immediately._

_Sector 02 reached. Proceed to Room 00X._

_Searching Room 00X._

_Room 00X located. Proceed immediately._

A door opens automatically when 181 arrives, so it enters. Room 00X is circular, and there are vertically-mounted jet engines surrounding a concave platform, located at the centre of the room. The platform is connected to an automated, Skynet-controlled programming device, and spider-like machines with tiny maintenance tools and sensors instead of mandibles are crawling on the engines, here and there. The light emerging from the platform make their chrome bodies shine, and their eight small red eyes sometimes emit red laser rays when they scan a specific part of the machine. 181 gets on the platform and kneels down. The engines start to whine, in a more and more high-pitched tone, then roar when reaching full power, and soon a perfect sphere of energy forms itself around it as lightnings crack all over the room. Then there is a bright white flash, and 181 is gone.

_Charging complete. Temporal displacement field active._

Los Angeles, Hayvenhurst Ave, July 15th 1999, 01:35.

The energy sphere of the time displacement field vanishes in the middle of a large avenue bordered by many houses, almost each of them looking different from are separated from the street by lawns. Between and behind the houses, here and there, are trees and shrubs. In this time the war does not exist. Not yet.

181, which is completely naked, rises slowly from the smoking crater left in the avenue and methodically inspects its surroundings. No one saw him appear. The avenue is deserted. 181 stares at the sky for a few moments, then begins to walk.

_Parameters match. Initiate mission. Acquire clothing and ID._

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Human located. Adult male. Scan clothing._

_Clothing match. Acquire._

The man 181 is now approaching is about as tall as it, and looks like an office worker. He wears a grey business suit with a white shirt and black tie. He has a beard and his hair are ruffled. He walks oddly and his eyes are a bit glassy. Coming closer, 181 detects molecules of ethanol among the carbon dioxyde the man is expiring. Overlapping with the other data it has already acquired, it deduces the man is drunk, and notes that it may complicate this phase of the mission. Running a simulation, it estimates at 58.665% the probability that it will have to acquire the clothes by force. Drunk humans are easier to terminate, due to the fact that their reflexes and senses are altered, making them less efficient when it comes to avoid a termination attempt. Yet, 181 finally decides to try the other way.

"Give me your clothes. Now.

- Hey, you got a problem with me ? Go to hell, man ! What's wrong with you ?!"

181 stares at the man with expressionless eyes. Suddenly it walks toward him, grabs him by the throat ands lifts him off the ground. The man gasps, suffocates, tries to struggle, in vain. With a sudden twist, the cyborg breaks his neck and releases him, letting him fall, lifeless, to the ground. As it has to take his ID, 181 knows that letting him live would have been a mistake. He may have reported the incident to the police.

_Scanning…_

_Deceased. Termination confirmed. Acquire clothing._

_Acquisition complete. Check ID. _

___Registering ID : Jack Cromartie. Age : 47. Born at July 13__th__ 1952. _

___ID registered. Dissimulate corpse._

_Dissimulation complete. Pursue mission. Acquire vehicle._

_Searching…_

_Vehicle found. Category : Sportscar._

_Model : Mustang Mach 1 Sportsroof 1970._

_Make : Ford Motor Company._

_Engine : 8-cylinder, V-configured 428 Cobra Jet engine._

_Max. power : 355 bph at 5200 rpm._

_Vehicle match. Acquire._

When coming close to the car, 181 notices some humans in the nearby vicinity. Possible eyewitnesses. It needs to discretely complete this portion of the mission. Luckily the driver's window is opened. 181 slips its arm through it, finds the latch and unlocks it. Then, it opens the door and sits. Ripping the covering of the starter, it spots the right wires and puts them in contact. Sparks fly out, and the engine growls. No reaction. Turning its head 181 sees the humans are busy listening to loud music, they didn't hear anything. Closing the door, 181 speeds away from them. Indifferent to them ever having been there.

_Vehicle acquired. Pursue mission. Find computer and weapons._

_Begin with weapons._

_Searching gunsmith shop._

_Searching…_

_Gunsmith shop found._

181 stops the car in frond of the shop and gets out. The shop is closed, the entry door is locked. Punching right in the lock, 181 smashes the door open and gets in. No one inside, the shop is empty. It then begins to search for appropriate weapons, its scanners assessing each gun, picks an M16A2 assault rifle, a Glock 17 pistol, then takes a big bag and puts them into it. After that, it finds ammunition for both guns, and puts them with the weapons. Then it closes the bag, lifts it and heads out of the shop. Opening the trunks of "its" car, 181 throws the bag in and closes it again. Then it stands here for a few seconds, assessing the surroundings, searching for any eventual eyewitness. But there is still no one. Satisfied, or as satisfied as a Terminator can be, it climbs into the car and drives away.

_Weapons acquired. Pursue mission._

_Find computer._

_Searching computer shop._

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Computer shop located._

_Warning. Shop closed. Force access door._

For the second time, 181 breaks the door open and goes in. Like in the gunsmith shop, things are quiet and still. No human in sight. Just as it was expecting.

_Searching computer._

_Searching…_

_Computer found._

_Model : Macintosh Performa 6300._

_Make : Apple Computer Inc._

_Processor : Motorola Power PC 630e 160MHz._

_Hard drive memory : 1.2 Go – IDE._

_Video memory : 1 Mo._

_Read/Write capability : 8x._

_RAM : CDRAM Technology ; 168 Mo._

_Computer match. Acquire._

The computer is in a huge box. It would be heavy for a typical human male. But 181 is _not_ a typical human male. It lifts the box effortless, seizes it on its shoulder and, again, heads to the car and puts it in the trunk. It notes that the street is still deserted. Only the noise coming from highways or the centre of the city, and the numerous lights, trouble the night. But nothing very disturbing for an assassin cyborg coming from the future. So it gets in the Mustang and starts speeding distancing itself from the remaining evidence that someone has been there. That things have been stolen. It is not good for discretion when you stay around a place you just broke into. 181 knows it. It knows that this is a reprehensible act, from their point of view. But it also knows that it is far from ending committing reprehensible acts. And that the worst is only to come.

_Computer acquired. Pursue mission._

_Searching operational base. Check Jack Cromartie's address._

_Registering address : 10954 Darby Ave, Los Angeles, CA._

_Address registered._

_Access memory… Searching geographic file section : Los Angeles._

_File section found. Access._

_Searching Darby Ave._

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Searching…_

_Darby Ave located. Proceed immediately._

_Darby Ave Reached. Searching n°10954._

_N°10954 located. Proceed immediately._

_N°10954 reached. Confirm proprietor's ID._

_ID confirmed. Scan construction._

181's eyes go from right to left as the machine scan the house using its thermal scanners. Looking for any trace of heat that would prove humans are inside. But it spots nothing. Stopping outside the front door, it searches the pockets of its jacket, finds the house keys, unlocks the door and steps inside. For about fifteen minutes, 181 then operates a methodical search in every room, every corner of the house. Still no result. And no clues that anyone besides from Cromartie may have lived here. So, it gets out, and goes to open the garage. There is already a car, a Mercedes C220 CDI. But, most of all, enough space for a second vehicle. 181 heads toward its stolen car, drives it into the garage, stops the engine and gets out. Afterwards, it quickly unloads the trunk and carries its gathered supplies inside the house. Then, it hides cautiously the weapons in the bedroom, brings the other box in it and then unpacks, connects and turns on the Macintosh.

_Initiate primary target search._

_Searching primary target's profile._

_Profile found. Access._

_Name : Connor._

_First name : John._

_Birth date : February 28__th__ 1985._

_Age : 15._

_Gender : Male._

_Type : Caucasian._

_Biological mother : Connor, Sarah._

_Biological father : Unknown._

_Current address : Unknown._

_Known relative(s) : Connor, Sarah._

_Mission : Terminate. _

_Primary targets currently not of age. Legally needs a tutor. Probable current tutor : Connor, Sarah._

_Connor, Sarah still researched for Miles Dyson's murder. Probable entries : Los Angeles Police Department, FBI._

_Initiate search for Connor, Sarah._

181 then opens an Internet page. Now that everything was set, the time had come for it to do what it had been created for. What it had been sent here for.

To hunt and to kill. To wipe out the only hope that is left for the human race.

THE END


End file.
